Showing posts with label Tsipras. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tsipras. Show all posts

Monday, October 3, 2016

SYRIZA government's police forces fire tear gas at pensioners during protest in Athens- KKE: "The government showed its real face"

The police forces of Tsipras' SYRIZA government confronts
elderly people with tear gas/ Athens, 3.10.2016.
Once again, the supposedly "left"- actually social democratic- government of Alexis Tsipras shows it's real face. After imposing numerous harsh, antipeople-antiworkers measures, after signing a third memorandum of austerity and after cutting wages and pensions, the coalition government of SYRIZA decided to enforce law and order against the protesting pensioners! 

The pensioners who protested against the complete destruction of their lives got a response from the police forces of Mr.Tsipras' government. That response was the use of pepper spray and tear gas against older people! 

Sunday, October 2, 2016

Greece: Communist mayor slams SYRIZA government, boycotts Tsipras' fiesta

KKE-backed mayor of Kesariani,
Ilias Stamelos.
ATHENS- In a symbolic gesture which carries a great message, the communist (KKE-backed) mayor of Kesariani, Ilias Stamelos, officially denied to participate in a governmental fiesta for the 75th anniversary of the country's most significant WW2 resistance movement, EAM (National Liberation Front). The government, along with the state television, ERT, are organising an event at the Kesariani Shooting Range (Skopeftirio)* on Sunday 2 October. Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras is scheduled to attend the event. 

In a letter addressed to the SYRIZA-ANEL government, mayor Stamelos points out the the city council's decision to deny any participation in October 2nd governmental event. Ilias Stamelos mentions that the heroic legacy of Kesariani's Shooting Range is in contrast with the governmental policy which attacks the rights of the working people. In his letter, among other things, the communist mayor writes:

"The policy exercised by the government is in total dissociation with the struggles and the claims of Kesariani's people and is directed against the Greek people in general. The SYRIZA-ANEL government has unleashed an attack against the rights and achievements of the people. It votes and applies memorandums of austerity, thus implementing a policy which crashes the people with taxes and reductions in wages and pensions, while on the same time it offers exemptions to the big capital". [...]

Thursday, September 29, 2016

Greek industrialists: "SYRIZA and New Democracy converge in their economic strategy"

Info taken from 'Rizospastis', 24/9/2016.

In it's latest weekly report, the Hellenic Federation of Enterprises (the union of the Greek industrialists) admit that the SYRIZA government and the right-wing, conservative opposition of New Democracy have no fundamental differences in their strategy for the country's economy. "The development objective is common, the means are different" says the report of SEV* thus openly acknowledging the convergence between SYRIZA and New Democracy in their strategy to serve the antipeople, antiworkers objectives and priorities of the Greek capital.

The industrialists evaluate the interventions of Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and opposition leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis at the Thessaloniki International Fair earlier this month as "positive", as long as both seem to be fully aligned to the demands of the domestic capital for competitiveness and recovery of profits. 

Wednesday, September 28, 2016

Liars and Opportunists: SYRIZA's 180-degree shift on the privatization of Elliniko

ATHENS (28/9/2016)- Greece's parliament passed new reforms on Tuesday night to cut pension expenditure and transfer control of public utilities to a new asset fundThe reforms seek to unlock 2.8 billion euros ($3.14 billion) in financial loans as part of the country's latest bailout program. 

The reforms were passed by a narrow 152-141 majority vote in Greece's 300-seat parliament, after 152 parliamentary members of the ruling SYRIZA-Independent Greeks (ANEL) coalition approved the reform bill. Only one member of the coalition voted against the bill, along with all opposition members. KKE MPs voted against the anti-people package of laws- "It's about time for the Greek people to say: No more sacrifices for the profits of the few" stated in his speech the General Secretary of the CC of Communist Party of Greece Dimitris Koutsoumbas.

Tuesday, September 20, 2016

KKE: Statement regarding PM Tsipras' remarks on the refugee-migrant crisis

Regarding the speech of Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras at the 71st UN General Assembly- and his remarks on the refugee crisis- the Press Office of the CC of the Communist Party of Greece issued the following statement:
"The Prime Minister not only didn't find a word to say about the real causes and those responsible for the wars and the refugee crisis in our region, but, furthermore, he justified the violation of the refugees' rights and of the Geneva Convention by adopting the arguments of the imperialist staffs about the "maintaining of social cohesion" and "public safety".
However, the refuge isn't a natural phenomenon; it is caused by the imperialist war, the antagonisms between the powerful ones, the poverty that capitalist exploitation creates.

Sunday, September 18, 2016

KKE General Secretary D.Koutsoumbas: "Tsipras has surpassed all limits of political deception against our people"

The General Secretary of the CC of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) Dimitris Koutsoumbas visited the Thessaloniki International Fair (TIF) on Wednesday and Thursday, where he attended a press conference. The General Secretary delivered an introductory speech and then he answered to the questions of the press. 

In his speech c.Koutsoumbas accused the SYRIZA-ANEL government and the EU for their antipeople policies as well as the New Democracy opposition and the other bourgeois parties. The General Secretary refered to the contemporary political and socio-economic issues, from government's attack against labour rights to various racist, anti-refugee incidents in the country. 

Here are some basic parts of c.Koutsoumbas speech:

Saturday, September 10, 2016

KKE GS Dimitris Koutsoumbas: "Mr.Tsipras' promises are only for a few monopoly groups and the big capital"

Source: 902.gr

Attending a massive rally of PAME (All-Workers Militant Front) on the day of Thessaloniki International Fair (TIF) inauguration, the General Secretary of KKE Dimitris Koutsoumbas made the following statement:

"The promises of Mr.Tsipras from TIF regarding development are only for a few monopoly groups of the big capital which will see again their profits soaring, by giving a pittance, a plate of food to the most extreme poverty.

For all the others, for the working class, for the popular strata- which will continue to be tormented- the antipeople measure will continue to exist, cuts in wages and pensions will continue, small businesses will continue closing down and being subject to foreclosures and auctions, the wild unbearable taxation will continue as well.

The situation can go no further; the SYRIZA-ANEL government continues to please the big capital, the EU, the quartet and continues to bleed our people. It continues the same policy of the previous governments of New Democracy and PASOK.

Thursday, September 8, 2016

European Communist Initiative: Statement on the meeting of the so-called “Alliance of the South” in Athens

From left to right: French President Francois
Hollande, Greek PM Alexis Tsipras and Spain's
PM Mariano Rajoy. (Archive Photo).
The European Communist Initiative carried out an important intervention regarding the upcoming meeting of the heads of the states of the so-called “European South”, which the Greek government is organizing on the 9thof September in Athens.
The “European Communist Initiative” notes in this statement that the organizers of this meeting aim to utilize it to reinforce the illusions of the peoples of Europe about an “Alliance of the South”, which will allegedly “put an end to austerity” and calls on the peoples to strengthen their struggle to overturn the anti-people political line of the EU and the capitalist system which they serve.
The full statement of the Secretariat of “European Communist Initiative” can be found below:
“A conference of the leaders of the Mediterranean countries of the EU, of the so-called "South" of the EU, will be held in Athens on the 9th of September, at the initiative of the "left" SYRIZA-ANEL government of the new memoranda and the dozens of anti-worker measures, and will be focused on the developments in the EU, the refugee-immigrant question and the notorious issue of "development".

Wednesday, August 31, 2016

Mr. Tsipras' new fairytale can no longer convince the people

Source: inter.kke.gr.

The overwhelming majority of the Greek people are being called on in this period by the "left" government to pay an unbearable property tax, which had been introduced by the previous government. This is a tax that has been kept in place and intensified by SYRIZA, despite its pre-election promises to abolish it. And it is precisely this period that the Prime Minister, A.Tsipras chose to spread new illusions amongst the people, by supporting with gusto in an interview with the newspaper "Real News" the fairytale of supposedly "just" development. He also seeks to utilize the upcoming meeting of the leaders of the EU's Mediterranean countries, which he is convening in Athens, in this direction.
He said, when explaining the goals of the attempted coordination of the states of the "South" on behalf of their bourgeoisies,  that the aim was to push for the transfer of funds to the periphery in order to support the capitalist recovery and the way out from the economic crisis. And he noted: "We do not want to be the poor periphery of the EU, we want to be a new centre, with an agenda and positive proposals for development and social cohesion."

Tuesday, August 9, 2016

KKE: The "debt regulation" of Greece will be accompanied by new anti-people measures

Regarding Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras' message about Greece's debt, the Press Office of the CC of KKE issued the following statement:

"In his unhistorical references, Mr.Tsipras "forgets" to say that the regulation of the debt and the post-war reconstruction of Germany wasn't aimed at it's people prosperity, but, on one hand, it was aimed at the deterrence of the increasing influence of the Soviet Union and the Socialist system- a plan which, among other things, included the utilisation of numerous former members of the Nazi regime- and, on the other hand, to the capitalist recovery of Germany.

Today, the regulation of the Greek debt, which has been agreed by the SYRIZA-ANEL government, will be accompanied by new memorandums of austerity and anti-people measures, for the benefit of the recovery of capitalist profits, while the debt will be paid by those who didn't create it, the people".

(Translation: In Defense of Communism).

Friday, July 15, 2016

SYRIZA government exposed: Τhey rejected KKE's proposal to relieve the people from their debts to the banks

Alexis Tsipras (left) and New Democracy
leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis.
Once again, the coalition government of Alexis Tsipras has been exposed. This time, the governmental coalition of SYRIZA-ANEL, with the support of the other bourgeois parties (New Democracy, PASOK, To Potami, Center Union and the Nazi Golden Dawn) rejected a draft law from the side of the Communist Party (KKE) to relieve low-income families from their debts to the banks. Once again, the Greek bourgeois parties show their real identity, as political representatives of the big Capital.

They refused to relieve the people from their debts to the banks.

Source: inter.kke.gr

The SYRIZA-ANEL government as well as the bourgeois opposition parties, with a common line in defense of capital, but using a "variety" of arguments, rejected  the draft law of the KKE for the relief of popular families from their debts to the banks in the full session of parliament on the 14/7.
Their class choice in favour of the banks and business groups became clear in the discussion and at the same time they were scornful of the KKE's proposal, because it presupposed that the bankers and capital would pay the costs for the measures to provide substantial relief to the working class and popular families. Their goal is to force the people to live with diminished expectations and demands, to live destitute wretched lives, with the noose of indebtedness, which is increasing due to unemployment, very high taxation, reductions in salaries and pensions etc.

Thursday, July 7, 2016

Chinese giant COSCO to PM Tsipras: "Dockworkers' strikes must be restricted"!

The official trip of Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras to China included everything: from sightseeing tour in the Great Wall and high-level talks with the Chinese government to agreements with some of the country's biggest monopoly groups. 

'Cosco', the shipping giant which holds the 51% of the Piraeus Port Authority (one of Europe's largest seaports), is one of these multinational giants which seeks in multiplying its profits from the investments in Greece. Prime Minister Tsipras met with the 'Cosco' boss Xu Lirong in Shanghai where they discussed the possibility of extending the collaboration between the Chinese giant and the Greek state. 

According to Greek media, Lirong asked from Tsipras to take any possible measure for the restriction of the strikes in Piraeus Port! Seems that 'Cosco' isn't pleased enough with the galley working conditions that exist in Greece's largest port and wants to extend the exploitation against dockworkers. Of course, this demand by 'Cosco' goes along the upcoming 2nd evaluation of the bailout agreement which includes new barbaric anti-workers laws, restriction of strikes, etc. 

Tuesday, July 5, 2016

One year since the Greek bailout referendum: KKE's position has been fully vindicated

One year since the Greek Bailout Referendum: KKE's position has been fully vindicated.

By Nikos Mottas.
5/7/2016.

It's been a year since the bailout referendum was held in Greece. The whole story surrounding the referendum, as well as what followed the referendum result, consists a major episode in a series of deceptions created by the Tsipras' coalition government. The referendum's question was whether the Greek people agreed or not with the bailout conditions proposed by the European Commission, the International Monetary Fund and the European Central Bank [1]. The outcome was a triumph of the “No” vote with 61.31%, while a 38.69% of the voters choosed the “Yes” choice.

However, the referendum itself was proved a political fraud. The SYRIZA-ANEL coalition government- and Prime Minister Tsipras personally- openly advocated in favor of the “No” vote. Thousands of “No” supporters gathered in mass demonstrations, while the country lived a short but intense polarised period, trapped between the “No vs Yes” dilemma. A fake and illusive dilemma, which had nothing to do with the real interests of the working masses who, once again, found themselves entrapped in bourgeois political antagonism.

Wednesday, June 22, 2016

SYRIZA and New Democracy remain loyal to the interests of Greek industrialists

Both Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and opposition leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis addressed the annual meeting of the Federation of Greek Industries (SEV), assuring the Capitalists about their commitment to the anti-worker, anti-people policy. PM and SYRIZA leader Tsipras invited the industrialists in a "fruitful and constructive dialogue" ahead of the second evaluation of the 3rd memorandum which, among other things, includes collective redundancies and a new law that will restrict the right of the labour unions to decide mass strikes.

Monday, June 13, 2016

PM Tsipras praises Greek Shipowners, SYRIZA's love-affair with the big Capital goes on

In Defense of Communism, with info from 902.gr.

The Greek shipping industry is a global power in the maritime sector. In 2015, the Greek Merchant Navy controlled the world's largest merchant fleet in terms of tonnage. Shipowners from Greece epitomize the power of the Greek bourgeoisie- according to a 1975 law, they have at least 70 tax breaks (!), while their fortunes are estimated in billions of dollars. 

The Greek Prime Minister- and SYRIZA's leader- Alexis Tsipras choosed the Maritime exhibition "Posidonia 2016" in order to express his strong will to serve the interests of the shipping industry. Addressing the event in Athens, Tsipras called the ship-owning billionaires to "trust the government" and praised the Greek shipping capital for it's "plan" and "vision". In his effort to convince the shipping giants that his government is an ally of the bourgeois-class, Alexis Tsipras said: "We feel the need to convince the Greek shipowners to trust us as far as we try to reform the Greek economy".

Wednesday, June 1, 2016

What the Capitalist Economic Crisis in Greece has taught us

By Nikos Mottas.

It was six years ago, on May 2010, when the then Prime Minister George Papandreou, in a televised message from the picturesque island of Kastelorizo, was announcing Greece's entry to the support mechanism of the IMF and the EU – the 'memorandum phase'. The economic crisis in Greece had manifested itself a year earlier, in 2009, when it entered in a phase of rapid recession, following the outbreak of global financial crisis in 2007-2008. Today, after four bourgeois governments (Papandreou, Papademos, Samaras, Tsipras) and three memorandums of harsh austerity packages, we can draw some significant conslusions. What did the Capitalist Economic Crisis in Greece teach us?

1. The Source of the Crisis.

Contrary to various bourgeois interpretations and theories of the economic crisis (over-consumption, casino-capitalism, etc.), there is one clear, scientifically proven, reality: Capitalism itself contains in it's DNA the inevitability of crises. Capitalist production, with it's contradictory character and anarchy, contains the seed of such crises. In Capitalist economy lies the motive to push capitalist reproduction to extremes levels, to accumulate immense profits, thus giving a monetary speculative form to the appropriation of surplus value from the working class labour. The devaluation of capital (either commercial or financial) and the devaluation of labour power (as a commodity), has occurred repeatedly in the past and will certainly occur in the future for as long as the exploitative system called 'Capitalism' exists.

Friday, May 27, 2016

Vladimir Putin visits Greece: Russian Monopolies seek to participate in Energy and Transportation privatization deals

Russia's President Vladimir Putin arrived in Athens today, bringing with him numerous businessmen and representatives of Russian monopoly groups, including Gazprom and Rosneft. Mr.Putin is scheduled to meet with the President of the Hellenic Republic Prokopis Pavlopoulos as well as with Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, while on Saturday he will pay a visit to Mount Athos in northern Greece. 

What is the major purpose of Putin's visit in Greece?

President Putin has clearly stated Moscow's intentions to strengthen Russian economic and geopolitical presense in Greece and the Balkan peninsula. In an article published in 'Kathimerini', Vladimir Putin pointed out his government interest in deepening the Greek-Russian relations, as long as they consist part of the relations between Russia and the EU. 

Sunday, May 22, 2016

Mikis Theodorakis fires against Tsipras' government: "They are destroying the present and future of our country"

Mikis Theodorakis.
In an article published in his personal webpage, legendary composer Mikis Theodorakis attacks the current Greek coalition government of Alexis Tsipras. 

In the beginning of his statement, Theodorakis writes about “a left-right political formation that has the overwhelming electoral and popular minority and obeys to the commands of foreigners destroying the present and future of our country," stressing that everything Tsipras' SYRIZA-ANEL government does, he does it "with no shame and knowing the harm he provokes to our society".

Two days ago, in a radio interview for 'Vima 99.5 FM' the renowned composer, songwriter and veteran politician expressed his dissapointment for the Greek Prime Minister. I am sorry for Tsipras, because power changes people and the leftist government will take the Left and Greece back” Theodorakis said.

Monday, May 16, 2016

Dimitris Koutsoumbas: "Tsipras and SYRIZA are fighting to save the rotten and exploitative capitalist system"

Dimitris Koutsoumbas, General Secretary of Greece's Communist Party (KKE) unleashed a fierce attack against the SYRIZA government of Alexis Tsipras during a public speech on Sunday in Thessaloniki. Speaking at an open public party-organised event honoring the 80th anniversary of May 1936 workers uprising, Koutsoumbas included a well-pointed attack against the social-democratic reformism and hypocrisy of Prime Minister Tsipras and the SYRIZA-ANEL government. 

Among other things, the GS of the CC of KKE said the following:

"Lately, SYRIZA delivers 'courses' of leftism and radicalism, like Mr.Tsipras did recently in the Parliament by saying, speaking to our Party, that "in today's difficult circumstances, left and radical is not to fantasize a virtual society, which you know that, even if you fight for that, isn't easy to come, but to 'bleed' in order to crerate- even slowly but steadlily- the circumstances when changes for the protection of rights of many will be able to thrive"!!!

But our difference with SYRIZA isn't that we are fighting for another, 'victual' society as Tsipras says, each party with different way.

Saturday, April 23, 2016

Greek Working-Class Unions vs SYRIZA-ANEL government: Preparations for a massive 48-hours General Strike

A dynamic, militant response to the plans of the SYRIZA-ANEL government is organised by working-class unions. PAME (All-Workers Militant Front) has called for mass demonstrations in Greece's major cities on Tuesday, April 26. The upcoming demonstrations will be a major preparation for a nationwide 48-hour General Strike. 

In a recent announcement, PAME stresses the following:
No worker should be fooled by the maneuvers, the manipulation and the tactics of the government (that aim to weaken the militant response against the new attack on the social-security system)
We have to respond to the provocative lies of the government!